


Wandering Man

by Rshinystars



Series: Consequence [2]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Ardyn still manages to be everywhere no matter what, M/M, Meeting, Slow Burn, nice!Ardyn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-03
Updated: 2017-06-03
Packaged: 2018-11-08 14:52:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11083902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rshinystars/pseuds/Rshinystars
Summary: “Where to? There aren’t any seats open,” Noctis doesn’t know why he’s talking.“Hm,” the man hums. “That does seem to be the case. I can just--”“You can sit here,” Noctis blurts out before realizing it. He’s such an idiot. “No one is showing up anyway. Might as well not take a whole table for myself.”





	Wandering Man

“It was weird,” Noctis confides to Prompto. “He was just there, and I’m almost certain he healed me. He may not have taken down the army, but I’m almost certain he healed me.”

Prompto takes a sip from his drink as he stares at Noctis carefully.

“You’re lucky man,” he says with a sigh. “You could have died out there. No matter how weird it was, if he wasn’t there, you probably would have died from blood loss.”

Noctis nods, “I know that. Which is why I was trying to figure out who he was, because no fool would come out there when they can tell that there are Imperial forces there.”

Prompto sits back in his seat and hums carefully as he tries to assess the situation, “I don’t know man. Are you sure that there’s no exception to that rule? You know healing and everything.”

“Pretty sure,” Noctis is almost annoyed that he can’t figure out who the man is.

“Maybe he’s from Tenebrae,” Prompto suggests aimlessly.

Noctis rolls his eyes, “Yeah because he’s the Oracle.”

Prompto holds his hands up defensively, “Hey! We don’t know. I was just making a suggestion. Plus, who knows what the rules are in Tenebrae. Maybe he’s a distant cousin from the royal family or something.”

Noctis smirks and takes a sip from his drink, “Unlikely. That’s _highly_ unlikely. That was almost a bad suggestion, Prompto.”

Prompto looks up at Noctis curiously, “So why do you want to figure him out so badly?”

Noctis looks out the window. Why? Because the man healed him and that was a phenomena on its own. That was plaguing his curiosity too much for him to just want to sit back and relax. No telling what could be going on. No telling who that man is. And if he has powers like that, then what if there are more people like that?

Noctis also feels as if he owes him. He literally saved Noctis’s life back then and he couldn’t even get a name. Of course the man knew him, Prince of Lucis and everything. And he had been calling him “your highness” since the beginning. That was only one downfall to be the prince. Everyone knows you. There’s no privacy.

“I owe him,” Noctis says shrugging. “He saved my life.”

“I don’t think you owe him anything,” Prompto says. “You’re kind of the prince and everything.”

“Yeah, but you know,” Noctis says. “No normal citizen goes out into a field that looks like a massacre was there with a potentially dead prince and act like everything's normal. There was something off about him.”

Prompto laughs, “I’m getting the feeling that you less want to thank him and more interrogate him.”

“Maybe,” Noctis agrees.

* * *

The man doesn’t appear--at least Noctis doesn’t notice him. His outfit unique to him makes him a sore thumb in the city of Insomnia. Noctis doesn’t know how he couldn’t possibly notice the said man. With the red-violet hair and that hat, he shouldn’t be able to blend in so easily. Then again, Noctis never learned anything else about him besides being “a man of no consequence.”

Noctis decides to meet Ignis in a cafe so they can do some work. He wanted to get out of his apartment and spend some time elsewhere. Ignis suggested this cafe. Yet, last minute, Noctis gets there, and Ignis has to cancel.

Frustrated, Noctis accepts Ignis’s apology about having to leave him alone for the day. Noctis decides that it can’t hurt to remain in the cafe for a little bit. Noctis takes a seat by a window and sighs trying to relax himself. His peace is ended when he hears a familiar voice. The way they articulate their words, even if he only spoke to him twice, he recognizes it.

Nobody here speaks like that here.

Noctis looks into the direction of the voice and immediately pinpoints the man. Standing at the front of the line, ordering, is the “man of no consequence.” The man turns around and faces Noctis. The older man allows himself a soft smile, before thanking the lady and walking over to him.

“Your Highness,” he tips his hat, “fancy meeting you here.”

“Yeah,” Noctis murmurs.

He looks around noticing that prince alone, “No company?”

“Cancelled last minute,” Noctis mumbles with annoyance.

The man smirks before hugging his cup closer to him and turning slightly. Noctis eyes him carefully trying to get a read on him. Anything to let him know what or who this man is.

“That is quite unfortunate,” he admits. “I suppose I will leave you be.”

Noctis eyes him carefully and then around the room. There aren’t any seats open. It’s the busiest time of the day.

“Where to? There aren’t any seats open,” Noctis doesn’t know why he’s talking.

“Hm,” the man hums. “That does seem to be the case. I can just--”

“You can sit here,” Noctis blurts out before realizing it. He’s such an idiot. “No one is showing up anyway. Might as well not take a whole table for myself.”

The man looks at him curiously, “Really now? You would allow me to sit with you?”

Noctis shrugs, “It’s not that big of a deal. I’m just a person too.” Noctis takes a sip of his drink, “Plus, I owe you for saving me the other day.”

“I did nothing,” the older man takes the seat across from Noctis.

Noctis begins to wonder if perhaps he made a mistake in letting him sit there. He doesn’t even know why he let him sit there in the first place. Prompto is probably right. It’s less wanting to thank the mysterious man and more wanting to figure out how the hell he healed him. All those claims that he didn’t heal him are lies. It’s too much of a coincidence to pass off. He was there the time before when the Empire attacked him, and then he showed up again.

Just in time to find him unconscious and somehow healed, and the army sent to kill him wiped out?

That’s too peculiar.

The man sits quietly looking everywhere but at Noctis, but the prince isn’t complaining. This is awkward enough as it is. Noctis turns back to his drink, only to find him looking at the prince. He opens his mouth to question him, but the man beats him to it.

“Why did you have me sit with you, Prince?” he asks rubbing the rim of his cup. “I highly doubt it is just to pay me back for some deed that I didn’t even do.”

Noctis holds back the urge to roll his eyes, “I’m almost certain you did help me.”

He raises an eyebrow, “You know, Your Highness, you are quite peculiar.”

“Peculiar, how?”

The man opposite shrugs only slightly, “For a royal prince, I never expected such leniency. Finding you roaming the streets in a cafe full of people. Speaking rather casually with people, indeed, you are very different from what I have anticipated.”

Noctis sits back, “I’m a normal person, so I don’t see the problem with this.” Placing his drink back on the table he continues, “Where are you from anyway?”

“That’s quite a personal question, now isn’t it, your highness?” the man smiles amused.

“If anything, you’re the peculiar one,”  Noctis shoots back. “You're the one who keeps showing up during the worst time possible. Niflheim attacking? No one shows up then.”

The man opposite snorts, “Is that problematic? I saved you didn't I?”

“So you _did_ save me,” Noctis eyes widen.

“I did,” he shrugs. “I found you and made sure that you were not dead.”

“So you healed me?”

“Not at all.”

Noctis huffs in annoyance.

“I have no particular home,” the man starts. “I’m a wandering man.”

“Where did that come from?” Noctis takes a drink.

“You asked me earlier where I was from,” he answers. “There’s your answer.”

Noctis hums. He had forgotten that. The man had his ways of distracting Noctis from his original topic.

“Well, _Man of No Consequence_ \--”

“Ardyn is fine,” he finally gives Noctis his name.

“Why are you telling me this now?” Noctis asks eying the man.

The man swirls his cup, “I figured, since I was so honored to be allowed to sit with the prince, I should be polite and tell him my name.” Ardyn smiles, “Besides, you were seeking me out, weren’t you?”

“Huh?! No, I wasn’t,” Noctis sputters shocked by his accusation.

“Then perhaps I misheard you and your little friend with the blond hair earlier,” Ardyn drinks the last out of his cup and waves over the waitress. “Both checks please.”

“You were there?” confusion and concern washes over Noctis’s body. Was this man following him? It would make sense when he thinks about how he miraculously seemed to always show up where he was during those Niflheim attacks.

Ardyn shakes his head, “Just passing by.”

The young prince makes to grab for his check absently when Ardyn swipes it from underneath him. More confusion overwhelms Noctis and he’s suddenly uncertain of everything.

“I can handle this,” Ardyn says standing.

“But no, I-”

“I had the honor to sit with the prince, I think paying it would be just fine.”

Noctis doesn’t know what he is most annoyed by. Ardyn telling him that he had overheard a conversation between him and his best friend, or having him constantly call him “your highness” or “prince.” All he does is make it a big deal to sit with him.

He’s not that special. All he wished is for people to just realize that instead of treating him like some sort of anomaly.

Something is telling Noctis to just tell him his name to get rid of that annoyance. Everything else is screaming at him to just stop and let the man leave just like that.

“Please, it wasn’t an honor,” Noctis waves absently. “It was just like sitting with anyone else.”

Ardyn stops mid step, “I beg to differ, Your-”

“Please, just call me Noctis,” the young prince shakes his head heaving a sigh. “I really don’t want to have to keep hearing that.”

Ardyn grins widely at Noctis, and the young boy begins to wonder what he said wrong, “‘Keep hearing that?’ Are you implying that this will not be our final meeting?”

Noctis gulps. That wasn’t exactly what he was intending to say, though to be fair he hadn’t exactly gotten an answer to the question he was asking. At this point, Noctis begins to wonder if it even matters. If he doesn’t cause any harm to anyone, there’s no point in being worked up about it.

“No?”

“Knowing you, I’ll run into you somewhere,” Noctis doesn't know if he should admit that. He doesn't know if he should even give the man the opportunity to _try_ and show up.

Ardyn turns away with resolution, “Then that is just as fine.”

Something is telling him that he might have just made a mistake. Something else is telling him that this won’t be that bad.

He doesn’t know which side to believe.


End file.
